No matter how much spiritual advancement a man has achieved, he often needs the speaking from the environment. This kind of speaking can be found in the Old Testament as well as in the New Testament. In reading church history and in considering the experience of the Lord's followers, we do not know of one person who did not need the speaking of the environment at all. Everyone needs the environment to remind him and speak to him. Many examples point to the fact that the more spiritual a person is in the eyes of the Lord, the more he allows his environment to speak to him, and the deeper a person is in following the Lord, the more he allows his environment to remind him and speak to him. Those who have problems with the Lord are either easily affected by the environment or insensitive to God's speaking through the environment. Brothers and sisters, the precious thing about a man who has normal fellowship with God is that he will not be influenced by the environment, yet at the same time, he will allow the environment to speak to him. If a man is not proper with the Lord and if he is not in fellowship with the Lord, a very small thing in the environment will affect him; however, at the same time, even a great thing in the environment will not cause his ear to be attuned to the Lord's voice or speaking. I present this principle, and you can test yourself accordingly. If you can be affected by your environment yet not hear its speaking, it proves that you are no longer in fellowship with the Lord and that you have become fallen. No environment should affect you, yet every environment should speak to you.
If an environment is placed before us, there is a speaking behind it. Whenever God puts an environment around us, He is speaking to us through the environment. Hidden within the environment is God's speaking to us. When I say "us," I mean every one of us. The environment that we face every day has a word for each of us Christians. Brothers and sisters, if we are living under God's light, we will see that He puts us in an environment for His way's sake on earth. In order to gain something from His children, God puts them in an environment. We should not consider things in a superficial way; we have to see the Lord's hand behind the veil. Once we see that the Lord is arranging the environment, we will be filled with a sense of sweetness. Although we cannot say that every environment is initiated by the throne, we can say that each one is according to the design of the throne. There is a throne in heaven, and our Lord resurrected and ascended to sit on that throne; all things are under His feet. God speaks to His children through the environment He has arranged. We should receive His speaking through the environment. If we are affected by the environment but not taught by it, we have a problem with the Lord; there is something wrong between us and Him.
Let us consider the story of Jacob. Everyone agrees that the most profound experience in Jacob's life was his wrestling with the Lord at Peniel. As a result of that wrestling, his name was changed. Even though Jacob went through a profound experience at Peniel, God still had to raise up circumstances when He spoke to him again. In Genesis 34 Jacob's daughter suffered a tragedy, and his sons caused a great deal of trouble. When such an environment arose, God spoke to Jacob in Genesis 35. Some may argue that God spoke to Jacob directly in Genesis 35 rather than speaking to him through the environment. Yet one must first read Genesis 34. God first put Jacob into the environment of chapter thirty-four before He spoke to him in chapter thirty-five. God said, "Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother" (v. 1). Brothers and sisters, God reminded Jacob of an old story. Many years earlier Jacob had run away to his uncle Laban's home out of fear that his brother Esau would kill him. When he reached Bethel the sun had set. He lodged there and fell asleep on a rock. God appeared to him in his dream, and when he awoke, he vowed, "If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: and this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee" (28:20-22). He made a vow to the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, did you not make a vow to the Lord when you were saved? Although you may have vowed like Jacob, bargaining with God while you vowed, your heart was still proper. When you began on this path, your heart toward the Lord was proper. Jacob made a vow to the Lord. His condition is a picture of our condition. The morning after Jacob made his vow, he left everything behind. During the entire time he stayed in the east, he maneuvered to protect himself. Although he prayed that God would protect him and give him food and raiment, he trusted in himself the whole time. He is a perfect reflection of us. He looked to God, yet he also exercised his own maneuvering hand. When he left Laban, he had to bow his head and acknowledge God's mercy on him. If it had been left to Jacob, he could not have prevailed over Laban! Jacob was crafty, but God had prepared Laban who was craftier. Jacob was dealt with for twenty years. Finally God took him out of Laban's hand, and Jacob had to acknowledge God's care. However, he had forgotten his earlier vow to the Lord. When he came back from Padan-aram, he settled in Shechem.
Brothers and sisters, you may think that Jacob should have been able to settle comfortably in Shechem since he had suffered so many dealings, passed through so many experiences, endured so many hardships, and acquired so many possessions. But this was not the case. The God whom he served would not allow him to settle down in peace. Jacob's heart was satisfied, but God's heart was not satisfied. God had given Jacob what he desired, but Jacob had not given God what He deserved. God still had to speak to him; He still had to speak to him through his environment. God knew that unless He dealt with Jacob through his environment, he would not be able to hear His voice.
Brothers and sisters, do not think that your spiritual experience is so deep that you can go by the inner voice alone. No, God often has to speak through the environment. You may encounter great things or small things, and they may have a little impact or a severe impact on you, but God has to raise up environments in order to speak to you. No one can be so spiritual that he no longer needs the speaking of the environment. God must create an environment around a believer and speak to him through that environment. Jacob was spiritual after Peniel. He was no longer Jacob; he had become Israel. He had passed through many trials and dealings and had even been touched by God in a thorough way. He was truly spiritual. Yet even after arriving at such a state, God had to raise up the environment to speak to him. He wanted to settle down in Shechem, but God would not allow it. The Bible does not say whether or not he realized this within himself. He may have seen something, but it did not remain in him for a long time. We have no idea whether he was conscious of his condition. We only know that God raised up the environment to speak to Jacob. What was the circumstance? His daughter suffered a tragedy, his sons caused him a great deal of trouble, and he was no longer able to keep his peace. When confronted with these circumstances, Jacob did not realize that God was trying to speak through the environment. He put the blame on his sons and became afraid. At this juncture God spoke to him: "Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother."
Brothers and sisters, the environment which Jacob encountered prepared him to receive God's speaking. Jacob thought that he had everything he needed and that he could live in peace. But God raised up the environment so that he could no longer be peacefully settled. God was saying, "I have given you what you asked for at the beginning. Now you should honor your vow." God raised up this environment. He spoke to Jacob through the environment. After Jacob heard this speaking, he offered himself and his household to the Lord once more and cleansed himself and his household.